Dragline bucket assembly



July 21, 1959 Filed Dec. 15, 1955 P. V. LARSEN DRAGLINE BUCKET ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 f ATTORNEYS.

July 21, 1959 P. v. LARSEN 7 2,895,239

DRAGLINE BUCKET ASSEMBL ATTOR United States Patent Ofiice 2,895,239 Patented July 21, 1959 DRAGLINE BUCKET ASSEMBLY Paul V. Larsen, Portland, reg., as signorjto Electric Steel Foundry Company, Portland, 0reg., a corporation of Oregon Application December 15, 1955, Serial No. 553,338

4 Claims. (Cl. 37-135) This invention relates to a dragline bucket assembly, and more especially to the front end structure of such an assembly.

Dragline bucket assemblies are ordinarily massive structures and often have a capacity of up to 29 cubic yards, and sometimes greater. The buckets are equipped along the forward open end thereof with teeth that bite and dig into the ground as the buckets are drawn forwardly by appropriate drag chains. After the buckets have received a load of earth, they are elevated by hoist chains, the load is dumped therefrom, and they are dropped back into the earth while the open forward end thereof faces downwardly to initially bring about a pene-' tration of the teeth into the earth. It will be appreciated that these buckets are subjected to rugged use, and high stresses are developed throughout the buckets during the use thereof.

The bucket assemblies at the forward end thereof have a lip to which the teeth are secured, cheek plates that extend upwardly from the lip, and an arch that extends over and connects the cheek plates together. A problem that has been ever-present in the industry is that the extremely high stresses that develop in the bucket structures, and to a large degree develop and are concentrated directly behind the arch, cause cracking in that area. The result, of course, is that the bucket assembly must be repaired before the use thereof can be continued, and this is undesirable because of the loss of time involved and the expense necessitated by the repairs.

An object of the invention is that of providing a drag- I line bucket assembly which is a strong, rigid and rugged structure capable of withstanding the high stresses that develop therein during use. Another object is in the provision of a dragline bucket assembly having a front end structure of particular design and construction that, among other things, is able to withstand the high stresses that tend to concentrate in the arch support, or in the area just behind the arch, whereby cracking of the structure in that area is substantially avoided. Still another object is in the provision of a front end structure adapted to be rigidly secured to a dragline bucket, and in which the lip, cheek plates and arch are integrated into a unitary structure forming a homogeneous ring that supports and defines the front end of a dragline bucket assembly.

A further object is in the provision of a front end structure as described, wherein the cheek plate is a one-piece casting having an upwardly extending portion that comprises a part of the arch, whereby each side of the front end structure is homogeneous and provides great rigidity for the high stressed sides of the bucket, at least portions of the plate being hollow whereby dead weight is minimized, with the result that there is a substantial gain in strength to weight ratio.

Still a further object is that of providing a front end structure wherein the unitary cheek has an irregular, elongated contour with the lower end portion thereof extending rearwardly alongthe length of a dragline bucket for a distance about one-third of its length, the cheek mating with the bucket along the elongated lines thereof and being united therewith along such lines, whereby a long lineal weld is afforded which strengthens the sides of a bucket assembly. A further object is to provide cheek plates in the front end structure of a dragline bucket assembly wherein the arch support is an integral part of the cheek, and in which a support rail extending along the top of the bucket projects over the arch support to form a lap joint that reinforces the arch support and arch section of the front end structure. Additional objects and advantages will become apparent as the specification develops.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a dragline bucket embodying the invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the front end structure, which in Figure 1 is shown secured to a bucket to form a dragline bucket assembly; Figure 3 is a side view in elevation of the assembly illustrated in Figure 1; and Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the components of the front end structure in spaced apart relation.

The dragline bucket is designated'generally with the numeral 10, and comprises a bucket section 11 having side walls 12 and 13, a bottom wall 14 and a rear wall 15. The side, bottom and rear walls of the bucket 11 are all secured together and define a compartment, the top of which and front end of which are open. The capacity of the bucket may vary considerably and, as has been brought out before, it may have a very'small capacity or a large capacity-upwards of thirty-five cubic yards, for example. The bucket 11 on each side thereof is provided with members 16 to which the hoist chains (not shown) for elevating the bucket assembly are secured.

Secured to the forward end of the bucket 11 is a front end assembly, seen best in Figure 2, that is designated generally with the numeral 17. The front end structure 17 comprises a lip 18, check plates 19 and 20, and an arch 21. In the illustration given, all of these components are separate but are rigidly secured togethen'as will be brought out in greater detail hereinafter, and the lip 18 along the forward edge thereof is equipped with a plurality of spaced apart base members 22 that provide a mounting for the teeth 23 (Figure l). The

front end structure 17 will be rigidly secured to the open front end of the bucket 11 by welding in a manner to be set forth hereinafter.

Each of the checks or cheek plates 19 and 20 is equipped with a drag hitch plate '24, and these plates are adapted to have pivotally secured thereto a drag hitch extension or clevis (not shown) to which the drag chains are anchored. The dragline bucket assembly is pulled forwardly; while the teeth 23 thereof bite into the ground, through drag line cables and through the hitch plates 24 which are coupled to the cables or chains, and are rigidly secured to the cheek plates.

The lip 18, as will be most apparent by referring to Figure 4, has a relatively fiat horizontal base and side portions 25 extending upwardly therefrom. The sides 25 terminate along an irregular line 26 that has a base and an upwardly extending flange along the inner surface of the lip adapted to have a complementary line of irregularity 27 at the lower end of each cheek plate mate therewith. The lip and cheek plates are welded together along the irregular line of mating joindure therebetween. This irregular line forms an elongated mating area between the lip and cheek plates so that, when welded together, a weld of increased lineal distance is afforded, and a stronger assembly able to withstand greater stresses then results.

' The cheek plates are cast members, and are cored out or are hollow through at least the forward generally tubular portion thereof, as is shown at 28 in Figure 4. The check plates are each provided with an upwardly directed extension 29 that forms a part of the arch. The upper arch portion 21 is hollow, as is shown at 30, and is adapted to'be fitted to the arch extensions 29 and will be rigidly secured thereto by welding. Thus, when the lip, cheek plates and arch are all welded together, a unitary or homogeneous ring is defined by the front end of the dragline bucket structure and serves to support the same.

.Cast integrally with the cheek plates 19 and 20 are the arch supports 31. When the front end structure 17 issecured to. a bucket 11, as shown best in Figure 3, the arch support has extending thereover a support rail 32 that runs along the uppermost edge of the bucket. The rail 32, in extending over the arch support 31, forms a lap joint therewith and further reinforces the area of the front end structure just behind the arch.

As is clear from Figure 4, the rear edge portion of the cheek plates is flanged and off-set (as shown at 33) and has an elongated and somewhat irregular configuration that, toward the lower end of the cheek plates, extends rearwardly for a distance that is equal to about one-third the length of the bucket 11. The off-set edge 33, which is partially represented by the arch support 31, is adapted to mate with a complementary edge portion provided by the bucket 11, and that is designated in Figure 3 with the numeral 34-the arch support section thereof, for purposes of identification, being given the number 35.

In assembly, the lip, cheek plates and arch are first all welded together to form an integrated ring that will provide a front end of a dragline bucket. Thereafter, the homogeneous ring is moved into position at the forward end of the bucket 11 and is welded thereto along the mating edges 33 and 34 of the front end structure and bucket, respectively, and along the arch support sections 31 and 35 which are in contiguous relation. The elongated line of joindure enables a weld of considerable length to be used in joining the front end structure and bucket so that the strength of joindure is considerably increased. The same is true of the irregular line of joindure between the lip and each of the cheeks. Since each check has an upward extension that forms a part of the arch and is cast integrally therewith, this portion of the front end structure is exceptionally strong and is better able to withstand the high stresses that concentrate in this area of the structure. The arch support 31 being also an integral part of the cheek plates further serves to increase the extent of reinforcement afforded to the arch at that area, and again the structure is better able to withstand the high stresses concentrating in that area. The reinforcing rails 32 also add to and-further this same objective. a

While in the foregoing specification an embodiment of the invention has been set forth in considerable detail for purposes of adequately disclosing the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous changes may be made in those details without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

l. A front end structure "for a dragline bucket, comprising a lip, an arch, and a pair of checks connecting ends of said arch to ends of said lip to form a unitary ring adapted to be secured to the forward end of a dragline bucket, each of said cheeks being elongated upwardly to form a hollow portion connected with said arch and elongated rearwardly of said elongated portion to provide an integral arch support along the base of said elongated portion, the lower edge of each cheek being constructed and arranged to mate with an end of said lip along an irregular elongated line.

2. A front end structure for a dragline bucket, comprising a lip, an arch, and a pair of cheeks connecting ends of said arch to ends of said lip to form a unitary ring adapted to be secured to the {forward end of the dragline bucket, each of said cheeks being a generally fiat, four-sided member having irregular sides and provided at one of the top sides thereof with an upwardlyextending, elongated hollow portion, the hollow portion of each cheek providing a means for connecting each of said cheeks to said arch, and the portion of said member adjacent said hollow portion and said top side adapted to cooperate with a side wall of the dragline bucket to reinforce and support said arch, the lower edge of each cheek being constructed and arranged to mate with an end of said lip along an irregular elongated line.

3. A front end structure for a dragline bucket, comprising a lip, an arch, and a pair of cheeks connecting ends of said arch to ends of said lip to form a unitary ring adapted to be secured to the forward end of the dragline Ibucket, each of said cheeks comprising a generally plate-like element equipped with an upwardlyextending, integral tubular portion, said tubular portion providing a means for connecting said element to said arch, said element having a lower edge arranged to mate with an end of said lip along an irregular elongated line, a fiat portion of said element rearwardly adjacent said tubular portion and adjacent the top of said element being adapted to cooperate with a side wall of the dragline bucket to reinforce and support said arch.

4. The structure of claim 3 in combination with a dragline bucket and in'which the bucket is equipped with support rails extending along the top of the side walls thereof, said side walls extending along the top of said elements and being secured thereto.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,938,163 Yaun Dec. 5, 1933 2,053,970 Price Sept. 8, 1936 2,336,729 Harris et al. Dec. 14, 1943 2,492,905 Van Buskirk Dec. 27, 1949 2,501,429 Yaun Mar. 2l, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 292,799 Great Britain June 28, 1928 

